Several million surgical procedures are performed every year on patients in hospitals and medical facilities all over the world. This does not include the other several million procedures performed by dental professionals on their patients. A major risk in all such invasive procedures is that of introducing infection. One of the most common ways of introducing infection is the failure to properly and sufficiently sterilize the surgical instruments or devices used in these procedures.
Use of disposal medical instruments have been viewed to be an essential step in this prevention of infection. However, even disposal medical instruments must first be sterilized before being packed into their sterile packagings.
Several sterilization technologies have been developed and are currently in use in a variety of systems all over the world. One of the most popular and traditional methods of sterilization is known as autoclave steam sterilization. It is considered highly effective, economical and does not present a source of danger to humans during the sterilization process. Furthermore, it is easily controllable and produces no dangerous by-products. However, the limitations of autoclave steam sterilization lie in its use of steam which exposes the devices being sterilized to high temperatures in excess of 100° C. as well as the introduction of moisture. In situations where medical instruments are not made to good specifications, exposure to this high temperature and moisture may well cause them to deteriorate or to even rust.
Other technologies developed for such sterilization purposes are ethylene oxide gas sterilization, gamma radiation sterilization, and hydrogen peroxide gas plasma sterilization. Each of these sterilization technologies have their own limitations that prevent their wide spread use and replacement of autoclave steam sterilization.
Ethylene oxide gas sterilization is costly and by-products and residues are toxic and require additional systems for their safe removals. Gamma radiation sterilization is also costly and the frequent exposure to radiation is also dangerous to humans and may potentially cause damage to the medical instruments. Hydrogen peroxide gas plasma is also costly and requires special packaging and container trays.
A new type of sterilization technology uses Ozone gas as a powerful oxidant to decompose into secondary oxidants which are highly reactive and capable of destroying microorganisms. However, the reactive nature of Ozone gas prevents its wide spread use as it poses a risk in degradation of the materials of the instruments being sterilized.
There is thus at present a glaring lack for an apparatus and method for sterilizing of medical and laboratory instruments and devices without the limitations of costs, safety and by-products.